This is the blog formerly known as Political Moose -- with a new color.

Tuesday, July 25, 2006

Democratic Party Fascism?

After hearing that a couple of his blogging buds had been blocked from a Joe Lieberman campaign event with Bill Clinton, Skippy had this to say:

"is this what the democratic party has come down to? refusing entry to a public event to citizens that happen to disagree with those in charge? that’s something that george w. bush has done throughout his administration, and there are numerous instances of people even going to jail for simply wearing an opposition button or tee shirt.this kind of fascism is not the democratic party i know. for you to be associated with this kind of elitist exclusivity not only does not reflect well on you, but will ultimately not reflect well on your wife, sen. clinton, should she want to obtain any higher office.i’m a blogger, i’ve been blogging for 4 years, and jane is a blogger, both of us attended the yearlykos in las vegas last month. i know markos of dailykos and duncan of eschaton and pretty much all the major bloggers, and i can assure you that this story will not sit well with the readers of our blogs who thought america was the land of free speech and the freedom to associate."

He did say that I could feel free to borrow from him so I am, and maybe somewhat out of context, but that's what we as bloggers are allowed to do. I'm only picking on Skippy's quote, which is actually a message he left on President Clinton's answering machine, because he is one of the few democrats that I really enjoy reading. And since he used to link my old blog I feel I owe reciprocate by linking back as often as I can. My real problem is with big party politics. And I feel that finally some democrats are starting to feel what third party advocates have always felt. Greens and others have been getting kicked out and arrested for years when they try to gain access. It's an exclusive party and they are very careful about who they want joining. Diane Feinstein, Joe Lieberman, Joe Biden and other's have been in power too long, but as long as they can keep scratching each other's backs they'll stay there. They will stay there to protect other rich people and put on a populist hat come election years, and if one is ever challenged by someone who might do real good the others will step forward to squash the rebellion.So now you know how I really feel about the democratic party, sorry.

6 Comments:

Right now, I am actually registered as a Republican. It's kind of a long story, so I'll keep it as short as possible... In our county, which is largely Republican, there were two open County Commissioner positions. Incumbent #1 was a traditional conservative, Incumbent #2 was a modern neocon type. Challenging Incumbent#1 was a modern neocon type freshly back from Iraq and using that for all the votes he could get. Challenging Incumbent #2 was our County Clerk, a traditional conservative who has served well in her position for over 20 years and is well-respected locally. All four candidates were Republicans, and Oregon has a closed primary system... so in order to have a say in who would be running our county's affairs, I had to switch party affiliation from Democrat to Republican. A fair number of local Democrats did this, much to the chagrin and editorial-page whining from the neocon candidates and their goofy followers. In the end, the traditional conservative incumbent beat the military neocon challenger, and the traditional conservative challenger beat the goofy divisive modern conservative incumbent. The winners are people I trust with our county government. The two who lost? Knowing our region's penchant for recall elections, I fully expect them to not be quiet losers.

Anyway... I just wanted you to know I will be registering as a Green when I change back from the Dark Side. I don't like big party politics either. In a presidential election, or maybe state Senate or Representative elections? I will vote for whoever can beat the GOP, because I believe that is the most important thing for our country politically. In other elections? Green for me.

We bought two hybrid cars, an 07 Camry and an 06 Prius. We are doing what else we can to conserve and preserve, and may even move to a smaller, more energy-efficient home. I am thinking nowadays that THAT is what it's really all about, that is, preserving the earth, and that lots of other matters are very small by comparison.

You should know that you have been somewhat of an inspiration in my choice. Thanks for blogging!

Greens are kidding themselves if they think that they aren't headed down the same road. If they ever get big name candidates who can actually raise some money, they will be just as beholden to that money as dems and republicans are now. The only way to keep money out of politics is to demand reform in our system. Until you do that, anyone who runs for public office will be bait for those who want something from them and can pay for it. After all, the truth is I doubt most people get into politics believing that they will someday be sellouts like all the rest. They probably have ideals and "principles." Our actual system perpetuates fraud and scandal. And our politicians, who ran for office to better the world and change the system, instead become ensared by it.

thanks, Snave. I think it is awesome you are personally doing all you can for our environment, and I know the green party would be happy to have you.

Alli, I do agree that the Green Party could be susceptible to the same problems that Democrats and Republicans have . . . Ralph Reed started out as a good Christian boy who wanted to reform our government, but somewhere down the line he decided he'd be happier taking money by screwing Native Americans.

The Green Party fully endorses public financing of elections, and they will not take corporate donations. Those are two stances that they take to distance themselves from the others. Will it always be enough, probably not, but for now I know I can trust one party.

Thanks, Moose, I went in today and filled out a voter registration form for changing my affiliation from Republican (gasp!) to Oregon's Pacific Green party. While I will do what I can to defeat Republicans, it is really because I am more anti-Republican than I am pro-Democrat. I agree with Alli, that if the Green party ever gets big enough, there will undoubtedly be the usual problems with the money and the greed it breeds... for now, however, I feel good about changing my course. In races where there is no chance of a Democrat beating a Republican, I will definitely vote Green. If there is a chance that the Democrat can keep the GOP at bay with a win, I will vote for the Democrat in races like U.S. Senator or U.S. Representative.

I don't care a heck of a lot for the Democrats at this point. The spectre of a Hillary Clinton presidential candidacy is something I find terrifying, because I feel it will be the death knell of the Democratic party should they choose to go with her in 08. Why? She seems to try and be everything to everyone, and I can't really tell where she stands on issues... she seems to be in it strictly for herself... she inspires way too much loathing from way too many people... and she is far too easy a target for the right-wing pundits, for Karl Rove, and for the sloganeers who create the sound-bytes (like "flip-flop", for example) that the conservatives feed off of.

I think the Democrats can gain control of the House in November, maybe gain a Senate seat or two... but I am having grave doubts about winning the White House in 2008. The party doesn't have any definite leadership, and there isn't any primary message yet with which to resonate with voters. Outfits like FOX and the AM radio talkers are going to play this for all it's worth, until voters get the impression that Democrats are generally indecisive, inept, and lacking a plan.

Sorry to be such a Gloomy Tunes guy, but despite my optimism for getting the House back, I don't see much hope for the Dems in 2008 unless some dramatic things happen to convince the voters that the left is a better way to go.